In general, a query created using basic search will be able to be translated to advanced search, and back again. However, a query created using advanced search may not be able to be translated to basic search, particularly if:

the query contains an OR operator (note you can have an IN operator and it will be translated, e.g. project in (A, B))

i.e. even though this query: (project = JRA OR project = CONF) is equivalent to this query: (project in (JRA, CONF)), only the second query will be translated.

the query contains a NOT operator

the query contains an EMPTY operator

the query contains any of the comparison operators: !=, IS, IS NOT, >, >=, <, <=

the query specifies a field and value that is related to a project (e.g. version, component, custom fields) and the project is not explicitly included in the query (e.g. fixVersion = "4.0", without the AND project=JRA). This is especially tricky with custom fields since they can be configured on a Project/Issue Type basis. The general rule of thumb is that if the query cannot be created in the basic search form, then it will not be able to be translated from advanced search to basic search.

Enter the criteria for the search. You can search against specific fields and/or search for specific text.

If you are searching against a field and can't find the field you want, or the field is displaying greyed out text, see the Troubleshooting section below.

If you are searching for text, you can use special characters and modifiers in your search text, such as wildcards and logical operators. See Search syntax for text fields.

The search results will automatically update in the issue navigator, unless your administrator has disabled automatic updates of search results. If so, you will need to click the Update button on the field drop-down after every change.

Running a saved search

Saved searches (also known as filters) are shown in the left panel, when using basic search. If the left panel is not showing, hover your mouse over the left side of the screen to display it.

To run a filter, e.g. My Open Issues, simply click it. The search criteria for the basic search will be set, and the search results will be displayed.

Note, clicking the Recently Viewed filter will switch you to the advanced search, as the basic search cannot represent the ORDER BY clause in this filter.

Some fields are only valid for a particular project/issue type context. If you choose a field in your search, then remove all projects/issue types that reference the field, then the field is invalid. The invalid field does not apply to your search and displays in grey text.

Some field values are only valid for a particular project/issue type context. For example, you may have configured a project to use a status In QA Review in its workflow. If you select this project and status in your search, then change the search to filter for a project that doesn't use In QA Review, the status will be invalid and ignored in the search.